After being rained out last weekend in Columbus, the Ohio men's golf team is headed to University Park, Pa. this weekend for the Rutherford Intercollegiate, hosted by Penn State University.
This will be the Bobcats' final non-conference tournament of the year, and the squad has high expectations for the 54-hole tourney.
We're normally in the top five in this tournament. I expect us to be in the top three or four
coach Bob Cooley said.
Ohio will look for sophomore Blake Russell to repeat his performance from last year's tourney, which he finished in 11th place at 3-under-par.
I feel pretty good about going into this tournament just because I like the course. The course sets up well for me. I'm familiar with it and I played well last year Russell said.
Russell will be joined by fellow sophomores Mark Cimarolli and Ryan Siekmann, as well as juniors Jon Johasky and Brian Elsea on the par-72 Penn State University Blue Course. The 6,575-yard course is not considered lengthy by any means, so the players will be more concerned with accuracy as opposed to distance.
It's not a particularly long golf course. There's a few tricky holes on it
and you have to be able to hit the tee ball straight. You don't have to use driver a lot on the golf course
instead it's a lot of fairway woods and long irons
Cooley said.
The Bobcats are looking forward to really getting back into the competitive spirit after their two-week hiatus from tournaments. The team realizes that the Rutherford Intercollegiate will provide a springboard into the Mid-American Conference Championships, which will be held May 5-7 in Westerville, Ohio.
We're a little anxious to get out there and play and to just try to get some confidence going into MACs
Johasky said.
While Cooley said the team has not talked about the MAC Championships much, he recognizes that the tournament is probably in the back of his players' minds.
We've been looking forward to the MAC tournament the whole year
so it's in our heads
but this weekend is Penn State
Russell said.
The only other MAC team competing in this year's Rutherford Intercollegiate tournament is the University of Akron. Play will begin on Friday at 7:30 a.m. The final round will then begin at 8:00 a.m. on Saturday.
